The technical term for a spay surgery is "ovariohysterectomy".  This surgery involves female cats and dogs.  At our clinic, your pet will first be "pre-sedated" by being given a sedative injection.  This will help to calm them and allow them to anesthetized without a lot of stress of struggle.  After this first injection takes effect, they will be further anesthetized with injectable and gas anesthesia.  The doctor will choose the best type of anesthesia for your pet based on his/her species, age, size, or any pre-existing conditions.  A monitor, called a Pulse Oximeter, will be applied to your pet's tongue.  This monitor allows the doctor and technician to listen to your pet's pulse rate and monitor the oxygen level in the blood.  For dogs, an intravenous catheter will be placed in the arm and your pet will be supplemented with fluids through the catheter.  This is helpful in dogs because there can be a fair amount of blood loss with a spay surgery.  Some cats may also be catheterized and given fluids if necessary.  Your pet's abdomen will be shaved and scrubbed with betadine to kill bacteria.  A fresh, sterilized pack of instruments and gloves is used for each animal.  After applying a sterile drape over your pet's abdomen, the doctor will make an incision.  Both the ovaries and the uterus will be removed.  The incision will be closed, and your pet will be given a post-surgical antibiotic injection to prevent infection.  He/she will be monitored during recovery and given a pain-relief injection if you opt for this service.

This is the sterilization procedure performed on male dogs and cats, and is not as complicated as the spay procedure.  Your pet will be pre-sedated, anesthetized, and monitored as described above in the Spay section.  Dogs will be shaved and scrubbed right above their testicles, as this is where the incision will be made.  A sterile instrument pack, drape, and gloves will be used, and the testicles will each be removed through the incision.  The incision is closed with internal sutures which will be absorbed over time.  For cats, the procedure is very simple: the testicles are scrubbed, and an incision is made through the scrotum directly over each testicle.  Each is removed and no sutures are necessary.  Post-surgical antibiotic injection and pain-relief injection (if opted for) are given and recover is monitored by the doctor and technician.

After the previously described anesthesia procedure, the anesthetized cat's front paws and toes are scrubbed with betadine.  Each claw is dissected away from the toe, being careful to preserve the cat's toe pads.  The toes are closed using a special tissue glue which dissolves over time.  The feet are wrapped with several layers of bandages to apply pressure, and left on overnight.  A post-antibiotic injection and a pain-relief injection (if opted for) are given.  Recovery is monitored by the doctor and technician.  The bandages are removed in the morning and the toes checked to make sure there is no active bleeding.  The cat is sent home with paper litter to use while the paws are healing.

Our dentistries are performed by a registered human dental technician and the veterinarian.  After your pet is anesthetized (as described in the Spay section), an intravenous catheter will be placed and fluid supplements given.  An intratracheal tube is placed in all dental patients at this time to prevent aspiration of the water used in the dental cleaning procedure.  An ultrasonic tooth scaler is used to break away all the tartar and clean the inside and outside of the teeth.  All teeth will then be polished in the same way your teeth are polished at the dentist.  The mouth will be assessed for any loose teeth that need to be pulled, infection, or other problems.   An antibiotic injection, and a pain-relief injection (if recommended and opted for) will be given and your pet may be sent home on oral antibiotics as well.  Recovery will be monitored by a technician and veterinarian.